Less than one-half of adults in the United States received health insurance through their employer in 2012, but the market showed signs of stabilizing after three years of decline, according to a poll.

The Gallup survey said employer-sponsored insurance, long a pillar of the $2.8-trillion U.S. health-care system, covered just under 45 per cent of U.S. adults last year, down from about 49 per cent in 2008, when the economy was engulfed by recession.

The biggest losses occurred among people earning less than $90,000 per year and among minorities.

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“High unemployment is partly to blame for the decrease in employer-based health insurance. The decline may also be due to fewer employers offering insurance or due to employees opting to not take their employers’ plan due to rising health insurance costs for employees,” Gallup said.